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The Silver Lining Foundation at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Private foundation

The Silver Lining Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$2.8M
Granted FY2024still arriving
44
Grants FY2024still arriving
13
States reached
$1.0M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0199% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2024.

Education$15MCivil Rights$2.7MPhilanthropy$2.0MHealth$1.5MYouth Development$643kCrime & Legal$525kScience & Tech$450kPublic Benefit$365kOther$0
02FY2024 · 44 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k14 grants · $48k
  • $10k–50k12 grants · $245k
  • $50k–250k17 grants · $1.5M
  • $250k+1 grant · $1.0M
$25,000
Median grant
13
States reached
$41M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION PARTNERS$1,043,211
CHILDREN NOW$175,000
OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE$170,000
BOREALIS PHILANTHROPY$150,000
AMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARCH IN THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES$150,000
EDSOURCE$100,000
EDUCARE SILICON VALLEY$100,000
POWER CALIFORNIA$75,000
ACCELERATE CHANGE INC$75,000
HOPEWELL FUND$75,000
MAKE THE ROAD PENNSYLVANIA$50,000
MICHIGAN ORGANIZING PROJECT$50,000
PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA INC$50,000
TIDES CENTER$50,000
PITTSBURGH UNITED$50,000
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY17–24, $2.4M) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 96% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%VOCES DE LA FRONTERA: $50k → 17%ASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE ATLANTA INC: $25k → 9%ASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE ATLANTA INC: $25k → 9%ASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE ATLANTA INC: $25k → 9%ASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE ATLANTA: $25k → 9%CHILDREN NOW: $710k → 10%CHILDREN NOW: $325k → 10%CHILDREN NOW: $175k → 10%CHILDREN NOW: $175k → 10%CHILDREN NOW: $175k → 10%CHILDREN NOW: $175k → 10%CHILDREN NOW: $175k → 10%INTL REFUGEE ASSISTANCE PROJECT: $25k → 17%CHILDREN NOW: $175k → 10%JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER OF SAN FRANCISCO: $1k → 10%JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER OF SAN FRANCISCO: $1k → 10%INTERNATIONAL REFUGEE ASSISTANCE PROJECT INC: $25k → 17%JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER OF SAN FRANCISCO: $1k → 10%JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER OF SAN FRANCISCO: $1k → 10%TIDES CENTER: $50k → 10%TIDES CENTER: $2k → 10%FAMILY CONNECTIONS CENTER: $25k → 10%JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER: $1k → 10%JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER: $1k → 10%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

WA
MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
PA
RI
CA
VA
MD
NC
DC
GA
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

90%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$20M · 59 repeat orgs$2.3M to everyone else

59 repeat relationships: 28 still active in FY2024, 31 since wound down; 13 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

59
30

Total granted

$20M
$1.9M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+17%
+36%

Still filing today

78%
33%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 83% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $460k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
EducationCivil RightsHuman ServicesArts & CulturePhilanthropyCrime & LegalOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • TC
    THE CALIFORNIA EDUCATION PARTNERS
    8× · 2017–2024 · $6.9M · revenue +139% · 27% of their budget
  • CHILDREN NOW
    8× · 2017–2024 · $2.1M · revenue +1%
  • OC
    OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE
    8× · 2017–2024 · $1.4M · revenue +31%

Funded once

  • SF
    SAN FRANCISCO DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN YOUTH & FAMILIES
    one grant, 2020 · $250k
  • SD
    SF DEPT OF CHIL YOUTH FAM
    one grant, 2019 · $250k
  • SE
    SOBRATO EARLY ACADEMIC LANGUAGE PROGRAMgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $200k · revenue +36%
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Silicon Schools Fund Inc

The mission of the silicon schools fund is to improve education through supporting the launch of excellent new schools, improving academic instruction in existing schools, and by funding some of the boldest innovations in education…

Education
2
Association of California School Administrators

The association serves its members by creating resources that enable california school administrators to develop and apply creative leadership and management skills and in turn, improve the educational process for all students.

—
3
The Uc Davis Foundation

The mission of the uc davis foundation is to secure, steward and manage private gifts for uc davis.

Education
4
California Forward

Ca fwd drives action to identify solutions that can be taken to scale to meet the challenges the state is facing. the organization is driven by the belief that regional solutions across the state will help ensure economic, environmental,…

Public Benefit
5
Golden Gate University

Golden gate university prepares individuals to lead and serve by providing high quality, practice-based educational programs in law, taxation, business and related professions - as a nonprofit institution - in an innovative and challenging…

Education
6
Public Advocates Inc

For more than five decades, public advocates has challenged the systemic causes of poverty and racial discrimination by strengthening community voices in public policy and achieving tangible legal victories advancing education, housing,…

—
7
Chicago Public Education Fund

The chicago public education fund (the fund) is a nonprofit organization that improves public schools in chicago by investing in the talented educators who lead them.

Education
8
The Common Application Inc

The common application is a not-for-profit membership organization of over 1,100 colleges and universities across the globe committed to access, equity, and integrity in the college admission process. every year, over 1.5 million students…

Education
9
California Competes

Established in 2011, our mission is to help transform the state's higher education system into an engine of economic opportunity that empowers all californians, particularly those from underserved communities, to achieve their full…

Education
10
San Francisco Friends School

At san francisco friends school, students learn in a community grounded in the quaker values of reflection, integrity, peaceful problem-solving and stewardship. our teachers challenge students with a dynamic curriculum that inspires…

Education
11
Innovate Public Schools

Build the parent and community demand for world-class public schools, and to accelerate the growth of these schools, particularly for low-income students, students of colors, and students with special needs.

Philanthropy
12
Ucsf Foundation Investment Company

The organization provides professional investment management services for endowed gifts and financial assets entrusted to the ucsf foundation.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Grantmakers for Education; the most unlike its peers is 1 Vote Counts. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

78 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 78 of the 112 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
9
Early backer (in before they grew)
78/78
Grantees still filing
46/78
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE CALIFORNIA EDUCATION PARTNERS: $6,852,330 · EducationTHE CALIFORNIA EDUCATION PARTNERSOCCIDENTAL COLLEGE: $1,440,000 · EducationOCCIDENTAL COLLEGEPARENT TEACHER HOME VISITS: $775,000 · EducationPARENT TEACHER HOME VISITSEDSOURCE INC: $675,000 · EducationEDSOURCE INCTHE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $403,000 · Education+22 more: $1,842,500 · Education+22 moreTRELLIS: $650,000 · OtherTRELLISREGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: $550,000 · OtherREGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MI…SOBRATO EARLY ACADEMIC LANGUAGE: $500,000 · OtherSOBRATO EARLY ACADEMIC LANGUAGEAMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH: $450,000 · OtherAMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCHAMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARCH IN THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES: $300,000 · OtherSAN FRANCISCO DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN YOUTH & FAMILIES: $250,000 · OtherSF DEPT OF CHIL YOUTH FAM: $250,000 · OtherCATHOLIC LEGAL IMMIGRATION NETWORK INC: $400,000 · OtherCATHOLIC LEGAL IMMIGRATION NETW…AMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARCH IN THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES: $450,000 · OtherAMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARC…+48 more: $2,958,978 · Other+48 moreCHILDREN NOW: $2,085,000 · Human ServicesCHILDREN NO…ASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE ATLANTA INC: $100,000 · Human Services+5 more: $207,500 · Human Services+5 moreBOREALIS PHILANTHROPY: $750,000 · Arts & CultureSAN FRANCISCO JAZZ ORGANIZATION: $95,000 · Arts & CultureCatchLight: $40,500 · Arts & Culture+3 more: $52,500 · Arts & CultureNEW VENTURE FUND: $750,000 · EnvironmentNATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL INC: $100,000 · EnvironmentGROUNDSWELL INC: $75,000 · EnvironmentBROWN UNIVERSITY: $462,500 · Community ImprovementPOWER CALIFORNIA: $225,000 · Community ImprovementPittsburgh United: $50,000 · Community ImprovementCOMMUNITY INITIATIVES: $150,000 · PhilanthropyGIANTS COMMUNITY FUND: $127,500 · PhilanthropyDONOR ADVISED CHARITABLE GIVING INC: $100,000 · PhilanthropyHOPEWELL FUND: $75,000 · PhilanthropyCALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION: $50,000 · PhilanthropyMICHIGAN ORGANIZING PROJECT: $50,000 · PhilanthropyCALIFORNIA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $50,000 · PhilanthropyNorthern California Grantmakers: $22,250 · Philanthropy+1 more: $6,000 · Philanthropy
Education$11,987,830Other$6,758,978Human Services$2,392,500Arts & Culture$938,000Environment$925,000Community Improvement$737,500Philanthropy$630,750

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetTHE CALIFORNIA EDUCATION PARTNERS: $6,852,330 over 8y, 27% of budgetCHILDREN NOW: $2,085,000 over 8y, 8.6% of budgetOCCIDENTAL COLLEGE: $1,440,000 over 8y, 0.1% of budgetPARENT TEACHER HOME VISITS: $775,000 over 7y, 20% of budgetNEW VENTURE FUND: $750,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetBOREALIS PHILANTHROPY: $750,000 over 5y, 0.4% of budgetEDSOURCE INC: $675,000 over 7y, 4.3% of budgetTRELLIS: $650,000 over 4y, 21% of budgetBROWN UNIVERSITY: $462,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARCH IN THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES: $450,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetTHE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $403,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetCATHOLIC LEGAL IMMIGRATION NETWORK INC: $400,000 over 4y, 1.0% of budgetUrban Ed Academy: $300,000 over 3y, 7.7% of budgetLearning Policy Institute: $250,000 over 2y, 1.4% of budgetPOWER CALIFORNIA: $225,000 over 3y, 1.6% of budgetFRIENDS OF EDUCARE CALIFORNIA AT SILICON VALLEY: $200,000 over 2y, 7.0% of budgetSOBRATO EARLY ACADEMIC LANGUAGE PROGRAM: $200,000 over 1y, 2.5% of budgetEASTSIDE COLLEGE PREPARATORY SCHOOL INC: $200,000 over 4y, 0.5% of budgetCOMMUNITY INITIATIVES: $150,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetPLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA INC: $150,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetCalifornians Dedicated to Education Foundation: $150,000 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetGIANTS COMMUNITY FUND: $127,500 over 8y, 1.0% of budgetCOLLEGE TRACK: $125,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetAsian Law Caucus: $100,000 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE ATLANTA INC: $100,000 over 4y, 0.5% of budgetHAMILTON FAMILIES: $100,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetREADING PARTNERS: $100,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetHomeless Prenatal Program Inc: $100,000 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetSan Francisco Education Fund: $100,000 over 1y, 5.2% of budgetNATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL INC: $100,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetSAN FRANCISCO JAZZ ORGANIZATION: $95,000 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetGROUNDSWELL INC: $75,000 over 1y, 3.0% of budgetASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: $75,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetHOPEWELL FUND: $75,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetACCELERATE CHANGE INC: $75,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetINTERNATIONAL REFUGEE ASSISTANCE PROJECT INC: $75,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetTIDES CENTER: $51,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION: $50,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetMICHIGAN ORGANIZING PROJECT: $50,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetMALDEF - MEXICAN AMERICAN LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND: $50,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetTEACHING LAB: $50,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetPittsburgh United: $50,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetVOCES DE LA FRONTERA INC: $50,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetBRADY CENTER TO PREVENT GUN VIOLENCE: $50,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetCALIFORNIA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCatchLight: $40,500 over 8y, 0.5% of budgetSPARK SF PUBLIC SCHOOLS: $40,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetUniversity of Chicago: $40,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

  • Who funds THE CALIFORNIA EDUCATION PARTNERS ↗
  • Who funds CHILDREN NOW ↗
  • Who funds OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE ↗
  • Who funds PARENT TEACHER HOME VISITS ↗
  • Who funds NEW VENTURE FUND ↗
  • Who funds BOREALIS PHILANTHROPY ↗
  • Who funds EDSOURCE INC ↗
  • Who funds TRELLIS ↗
  • Who funds BROWN UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds AMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR RESEARCH IN THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES ↗
  • Who funds THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds CATHOLIC LEGAL IMMIGRATION NETWORK INC ↗
  • Who funds Urban Ed Academy ↗
  • Who funds Learning Policy Institute ↗
  • Who funds POWER CALIFORNIA ↗
  • Who funds FRIENDS OF EDUCARE CALIFORNIA AT SILICON VALLEY ↗
  • Who funds SOBRATO EARLY ACADEMIC LANGUAGE PROGRAM ↗
  • Who funds EASTSIDE COLLEGE PREPARATORY SCHOOL INC ↗
  • Who funds COMMUNITY INITIATIVES ↗
  • Who funds PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA INC ↗
  • Who funds Californians Dedicated to Education Foundation ↗
  • Who funds GIANTS COMMUNITY FUND ↗
  • Who funds COLLEGE TRACK ↗
  • Who funds DONOR ADVISED CHARITABLE GIVING INC ↗
  • Who funds Asian Law Caucus ↗
  • Who funds ASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE ATLANTA INC ↗

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

Tides FoundationSilicon Valley Commun…The Heising-Simons Fo…Esb Charitable Founda…Robert and Ruth Halpe…The William & Flora H…Evelyn and Walter Haa…The James Irvine Foun…Amalgamated Charitabl…New Venture FundEast Bay Community Fo…Elbridge Stuart Found…
Tides FoundationCA38× affinity25 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Tides Foundation · Silicon Valley Community Foundation · The Heising-Simons Foundation · Esb Charitable Foundation · Robert and Ruth Halperin Foundation · The William & Flora Hewlett Foundation · Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr Fund · The James Irvine Foundation · Amalgamated Charitable Foundation Inc · New Venture Fund · East Bay Community Foundation · Elbridge Stuart Foundation Dba Stuart Foundation

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization The Silver Lining Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Silver Lining Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 30%2%6%14%25%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 7%
  • President and Fellows of Harvard College: 7% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
3get no government money at all
21report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
typical government reliance, FY20–25
How this is measured
Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.
05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to The Silver Lining Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The Silver Lining Foundation through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 112 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

How this is measured
Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

Generated from the IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Silver Lining’s filings →

More from the funding graph

The unnamed billions
grants reported with no recipient in the public record
The regranting layer
51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
The DAF merry-go-round
$9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
The endowment market
who holds foundation money, and what just moved
The camps
funders cluster by geography, not ideology
By state
where grant money is based, and what stays home